| Shepherds of Christ Daily Writing |
 |
November 17, 2023
|
November
18th Holy Spirit Novena |
The Novena Rosary
Mysteries |
Please pray for Fr. Carter's Homily Book.
Pray for Bob, Chuck & other intentions.
Consecration Prayer for Peace
I consecrate Russia and the Ukraine to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
I further consecrate the priests, the Church and the world to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Immaculate Heart of Mary.
I do this in the name of Jesus in as far as I am able, united to the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, praying to the Father, in the Holy Spirit, with all the angels and saints and the souls in purgatory through the powerful intercession of Mary, Queen of Peace. Amen.
I further consecrate myself, all members of my family and ask the Holy Spirit to fill us. I spread the Blood of Jesus on all above, I cast the devil into hell away from all of us and consecrate all persons, in as far as I am able, to the Sacred Heart and Immaculate Heart.
Prayer for Grace for Election and our Country
Dear Father united to Jesus in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the Sacrifice of Calvary sacramentally made present, celebrated around the world, in the Holy Spirit. We offer up all we do united to the Mass. We unite in one mind and one heart as members of the mystical body of Christ, with Christ our head in the pure and holy Hearts of Jesus and Mary, through the powerful intercession of Mary with all the angels and saints and souls in purgatory, and we beg for the saving grace, for our country, the United States. Please help us. We further pray for unity to always do the will of God in love. We spread the Blood of Jesus on the leaders and people of the United States and cast the devil into hell. We consecrate our country to the Sacred Heart and Immaculate Heart and all our dioceses, and beg for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit. God help us. We pray for our families, the priests, the Church and the world. In the Name of Jesus please hear us, we pray. We pray for our president and leaders. We pray that we are united as one nation under God to work together in love as God wants.
November 15, 2023
R. If we realize how much God
loves us, how happy we would
be.
We are so special to God.
God created us so special.
God wants a love relationship
with us.
God wants us to give Him
love, to spend time with Him.
We are so special to Him.
Jesus is the Bridegroom of
our soul.
Jesus shows us His Sacred
Heart, He wants our love
with Him forever in heaven.
God is love.
Jesus: My Heart beats for
you.
R. On December 17, 1991
I saw Jesus’ Sacred Heart
open and on-fire.
December 17, 1991
Jesus: I am Jesus. I have spoken as never before, you will spread My love to all souls on this earth.
His Burning Heart
R. I was alone in All Saints Church after Mass and Communion, in front of the tabernacle, when I saw the Sacred Heart. It was red around the outside, then a layer of yellow and then the brightest light in the center. I felt heat and it looked like an open furnace.
I thought about it all day and it instantly gave me peace and warmth in my heart. This is the purpose of these letters—to draw hearts to the ardent on-fire love of Jesus. I received the following message that day:
"Open your heart to the fire of God's love. He is ablaze in your heart. He wants to dwell in you and love you and others through you. Love God, yourself and one another and experience the fire set aglow in your heart and experience the warmth of His love." end of writing
R. Jesus loves us so much.
Jesus died for our sins.
Jesus gives us new life.
These are Love Letters from
Jesus, in God’s Blue Book.
R. Fr. Carter said the Blue
Books were as much his as
mine.
Fr. Carter discerned the
books.
Jesus: This is the picture I want in My messages. When you read these messages, look at My picture and know I love you. These messages are My words of love for each of you.
Shepherds of Christ Priestly Newsletter 2000 Issue 3Here are words from St. Claude La Columbière,
one of the great apostles of devotion to the Heart
of Christ. Speaking to Jesus, Claude says:
You share my burdens,
You take them upon yourself.
You listen to me fondly when I tell you my troubles.
You never fail to lighten them.
I find You at all times and in all places.
You never leave me.
I will always find You wherever I go.Old age or misfortune will not cause You to abandon me.
You will never be closer to me than
When all seems to go against me.
No matter how miserable I may be,
You will never cease to be my friend.You tolerate my faults with admirable patience.
You are always ready to come to me, if I so desire it.Jesus, may I die praising you!
May I die loving you!
May I die for the love of you.1212. St. Claude de la Columbiere, as published by Apostleship of Prayer, Detroit Province of the Society of Jesus.
Promises of Our Lord to those devoted to His Sacred Heart:
1. I will give them all the graces necessary in their state of life.
2. I will establish peace in their homes.
3. I will comfort them in all their afflictions.
4. I will be their refuge during life and above all in death.
5. I will bestow a large blessing on all their undertakings.
6. Sinners shall find in My Heart the source and the infinite ocean of mercy.
7. Tepid souls shall grow fervent.
8. Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection.
9. I will bless every place where a picture of My Heart shall be set up and honored.
10. I will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts.
11. Those who promote this devotion shall have their names written in My Heart, never to be blotted out.
12. I promise you in the excessive mercy of My Heart that My all-powerful love will grant to all those who communicate on the first Friday in nine consecutive months the grace of final penitence; they shall not die in My disgrace nor without receiving their sacraments; My divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment.
R. When I saw Jesus’ Heart
open on-fire - it was like a
furnace -
December 17, 1991 - 32
years ago
Mary appeared 5 years later
December 17, 1996 in
Clearwater.
If you have faith like a mustard seed,
you can move a mountain.
I love this for Christmas card
R. God’s will for us
God has a plan for our lives.
We need to ask the Holy
Spirit to help us do the will
of God.
Fear can be a monster in
our lives, that we can give
into, when God is calling us
to do something.
Look at Mary and Jesus.
They obeyed the will of God.
When we run away from
God’s calling, things get
worse.
Do we make decisions
depending on if we feel
accepted or rejected by
others?
We can’t base decisions on
fear - if we reject what God
wants us to do.
Pray for courage.
Pray for faith
to do God’s will!!!
Mary did God’s will if
carrying a boulder or a
pebble.
Do we make decisions
based on what we do if
it is hard or easy.?
Look at the Master.
Jesus showed us He
obeyed His Father’s will to
His death on the cross.
Some do things for power
and control.
Obeying God means doing
it when He wants - His timing.
Doing it when God wants it.
Doing it the way He wants it.
Obedience is a virtue.
Shepherds of Christ Priestly Newsletter 2000 Issue 3
The Father's Will for Us - Our Source of Peace
Pope John Paul II instructs us: "The Church, as a reconciled and reconciling community, cannot forget that at the source of her gift and mission of reconciliation is the initiative, full of compassionate love and mercy, of that God who is love (see 1 John 4:8) and who out of love created human beings (see Wisdom 11:23-26; Genesis 1:27: Psalms 8:4-8)…He created them so that they might live in friendship with Him and in communion with one another.
"God is faithful to His eternal plan even when man, under the impulse of the evil one (see Wisdom 2:24) and carried away by his own pride, abuses the freedom given to him in order to love and generously seek what is good, and (instead) refuses to obey his Lord and Father. God is faithful even when man, instead of responding with love to God’s love, opposes Him and treats Him like a rival, deluding himself and relying on his own power, with the resulting break of relationship with the One who created him. In spite of this transgression on man’s part, God remains faithful in love.
"It is certainly true that the story of the Garden of Eden makes us think about the tragic consequences of rejecting the Father, which becomes evident in man’s inner disorder and in the breakdown of harmony between man and woman, brother and brother (see Genesis 3:12 ff; 4:1-16). Also significant is the Gospel parable of the two brothers (the parable of the ‘prodigal son’; see Luke 15:11-32) who, in different ways, distance themselves from their father and cause a rift between them. Refusal of God’s fatherly love and of His loving gifts is always at the root of humanity’s divisions.
"But we know that God…like the father in the parable (of the prodigal son), does not close His heart to any of His children. He waits for them, looks for them, goes to meet them at the place where the refusal of communion imprisons them in isolation and division. He calls them to gather about His table in the joy of the feast of forgiveness and reconciliation.
"This initiative on God’s part is made concrete and manifest in the redemptive act of Christ, which radiates through the world by means of the ministry of the Church." 13
13. Pope John Paul II, as in Celebrate 2000!, Servant Publications, pp. 140-141.
R. First Commandment
1. I, the Lord, am your God. You shall not have other gods besides me.God must be first.
God is in control.
God is ruler.
God is over.
God gives us a free will!
We can make choices that
cause us heartache, disaster,
suffering, opposing God’s
will.
God created the Universe.
God is Ruler.
Pray for greater faith to
obey God.
Pray for grace to obey God.
Rebellion to God’s will has
consequences, wars, disorder.
We must be strong and
courageous to obey and
follow Jesus.
Why do we disobey God?
Do it in His timing!!
It takes courage!!!
God’s timing is perfect!!
Meditate on the Word!!
Don’t lose out.
The Word is our textbook
for life.
Life is in Him.
Listen to God!!
Everybody can have an
opinion on our life.
Discern the spirits.
The Holy Spirit is our guide.Ephesians 4:25-32
So from now on, there must be no more lies. Speak the truth to one another, since we are all parts of one another. Even if you are angry, do not sin: never let the sun set on your anger or else you will give the devil a foothold. Anyone who was a thief must stop stealing; instead he should exert himself at some honest job with his own hands so that he may have something to share with those in need. No foul word should ever cross your lips; let your words be for the improvement of others, as occasion offers, and do good to your listeners; do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God who has marked you with his seal, ready for the day when we shall be set free. Any bitterness or bad temper or anger or shouting or abuse must be far removed from you-as must every kind of malice. Be generous to one another, sympathetic, forgiving each other as readily as God forgave you in Christ.
R. To obey God - we must quit
sinning.
When we disobeyed, we ask
for forgiveness.
We repent,
We are sorry.
Sometimes we walk in the
unknown.
We walk by faith, not by
sight!!
God help our hearts be one
with Yours.
Dear God, cleanse us from
all that is not righteous.
Help me to be obedient to
Your will.
Please bless us on our
journey obeying God.
This has eternal consequences,
how we learn to live obedient
to God’s will.
Fill our hearts with light.
Holy Spirit fill us, guide us!!!
Do not give into the deadly
sins. Amen.
Are we prepared if the
Bridegroom comes?
Do we respect just authority
according to God’s will?
Jesus is King of our hearts.
Sin is bondage!!!
Sin leads to disorder,
suffering, disaster.
Fr. Joe did a good homily on
the devil 4th Sunday ordinary
times.Fr. Joe is good.
We are blest.
4th Sunday in Ordinary Time
February 1, 2015INTRODUCTION – (Deuteronomy 18, 15-20; I Cor. 7, 32-35; Mark 1, 21-28) Our second reading from Paul’s letter to the Corinthians might be difficult to understand. So I would like to give a little background. The passage is from a section of Paul’s letter where he is dealing with a question about marriage and celibacy. Paul began this topic by affirming the value of marriage and then he moves on, which is today’s reading, to affirm the value of celibacy. His suggestion (not a rule), is directed to those who were not yet married or who were widowed and he points out the advantages of remaining unmarried. This suggestion is based on the expectation of the early Church that Jesus was going to return very soon and with his coming the world would come to an end. To quote what Paul said in last week’s reading: “the time is running out” and “the world as we know it is passing away.” If it seems as if Paul is overemphasizing the spiritual advantages of celibacy, consider how you might view things with regard to getting married and starting a family if you seriously thought that probably in a year or two the world would end and Jesus would return.
Some background about our first reading might also be helpful. It takes place on the East side of the Jordan River across from the Promised Land. After many years in the desert, God’s people were ready to cross the Jordan and enter the land God promised to give them. Moses knew that very soon God would call him to leave this world and God’s people would cross the Jordan and enter their new Land without him. Basically Moses is saying “goodbye.” He assures them God would not leave them without direction or leadership. God would send them another prophet like himself who would speak God’s word to them. We usually think of a prophet as a person who foretells the future, and sometimes the prophet did, but the best definition of a prophet is at the end of today’s first reading: one who speaks God’s word. Our first reading prepares us for the gospel where Jesus speaks God’s word with power and authority.
HOMILY – From the very beginning of Mark’s gospel, Mark wants us to know who Jesus is. He introduced his gospel with the words: “the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” Eight verses later John the Baptist testifies that Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit. Three verses after that Jesus is baptized and God in Heaven speaks to Jesus: “You are my beloved Son. With you I am well pleased.” If we read down a few more verses, to verse 24, Mark again tells us about Jesus. This information comes from a very unexpected source, the devil, who acknowledges Jesus as “the Holy One of God.” The people in the synagogue
are impressed with the power in Jesus’ teaching and they consider him a prophet; but the evil spirit already knows who Jesus is. By the way, this is the first miracle mentioned by St. Mark. He not only wants us to know who Jesus is but he wants us to know Jesus was not afraid of the evil powers in this world and was willing to face them head on.When we were in catechism class, we were taught that temptations come from the world, the flesh and the devil. We’ve all experienced how the world and the flesh can lead us astray, but many people think of the devil as a myth. In my 50 years as a priest, I am convinced through the daily news and through counseling I have done that devils are for real. Devils are smart enough not to make themselves obvious. That way they can work more effectively because we are not aware that they are busy doing their thing. I
believe that Jesus’ experience with demons was also real. I would grant that years ago epilepsy or mentalillness was considered to be caused by demons, but I believe in other cases, it was the real thing Jesus was fighting against. Exorcisms make up the largest single category of healings in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. I have two last points.1) Jesus is admired by many people today. He is considered a good person, a person who cared greatly about others and a great teacher. The Moslems even consider him a great prophet. But that’s all he is in the minds of many people. We, as Christians, see him differently. He is not someone whom we can choose to follow or ignore depending on whether we agree with him or not. He is the Holy One of God; he is God’s Son. When he speaks to us, we must listen to him. That’s one of the reasons why we come to Mass on
Sunday. The whole first part of the Mass focuses on hearing God’s word and reflecting on it.
2) The devil: We don’t hear much about the devil except in jokes. But the devil is not a joke. The Scriptures take him seriously. I have mentioned that in my experience as a priest and counselor, I definitely have come to believe there are evil powers at work in the world, which are called devils. I’ve never had any dramatic experiences like in today’s gospel or like the movie The Exorcist, which, by the way was, in most respects, based on a true story. Here’s why I think most of us are not aware of the devil’s strategy, it’s because the devil approaches us from where we are the weakest. The devil is very subtle. For example, if we’re angry, the devil simply encourages us to keep feeling that way, and the devil may even suggest additional reasons why we should be boiling with anger. The same goes with other weaknesses, such as hatred, envy, laziness, pride, lust, greed, gluttony, etc. There is one stronger than the devil who will help us if we ask. He is a prophet greater than Moses – he is the Holy One of God and is God’s Son. Ask his help in time of temptation. Amen.
Glorious Mysteries
The Resurrection
1. On the third day, Jesus
rose from the dead.
2. Jesus is our Savior and
Redeemer.
3. Dear Lord we thank You
for all You did for us.
4. Dear God, fill us with love
and hope.
5. We in the Church are the
body of Christ, with Christ
the head.
6. Dear God, thank You for
the Sacraments and the
Church.
7. In Shepherds of Christ,
we pray for the priest, the
Church and the world.
8. We spread the Consecration
to the Sacred Heart and
Immaculate Heart.
9. God please give us the
grace we need most.10. Excerpt from Response in Christ by Fr. Edward Carter, S.J.
e) Relationship with Members of the Church
There is but one true Church of Christ. Yet this one Church has three different states of existence. There is the pilgrim Church, the Church of this world, composed of members who have received the grace of Christ and strive for its development. They have not yet obtained the goal of their efforts, as have the members of the heavenly Church, who enjoy God in eternal happiness. The Church suffering is an intermediate state of existence necessary for those who had not achieved the required purification as members of the pilgrim Church. Although there are these three phases of the Church’s existence, there is a profound union existing between all the members. All these members possess the same basic life of grace in Christ, and this common life establishes the most intimate bonds of love. In our preceding chapter, we discussed the pilgrim Church. Let us now consider the Church suffering and the heavenly Church.
The members of the Church suffering are those who have departed from this life in an incomplete state of Christian development. Their development is incomplete in the sense that grace has not fully taken possession of them, and, as a result, they are yet closed in upon themselves to a greater or lesser degree. They as yet cannot open themselves out in complete love to the Triune God in the beatific vision. They must undergo a further purification, a purification which could have been achieved upon earth with merit. Now the purification must be achieved with no merit attached. The pain of this purification is mixed with the certain expectation of achieving the vision of God. We can hasten the advent of this vision for this people by the offering of prayers and other good works. Scripture itself refers to our action on behalf of those in purgatory in Chapter 12 of the Second Book of Maccabees beginning with verse 38.
The members of the heavenly Church are those in whom the life of grace has taken full possession and has reached its completion in the life of glory. Faith now is unnecessary, as the light of glory gives the human intellect a new strength and capacity for seeing God face-to-face. While the Christian was a wayfarer, he received the imprint of the indwelling Trinity as he shared in God’s own life. Now in heaven that grace-life and possession of God reaches its completion—the absolute completion is not achieved, however, until the resurrection of the body. The divine persons give Themselves to the beatified in a profound union far surpassing that of the indwelling of the Trinity experienced here below.
This life of heaven is still the Christ-life, for just as we possess a share in Trinitarian life here below as mediated by Christ, and exercise this grace-life as structured by Him, so also in heaven is the mediation of Christ present. In the words of Rahner, "One always sees the Father through Jesus. Just as immediately as this, for the directness of the vision of God is not a denial of the mediatorship of Christ as man."14 And not only does the humanity of Christ unite the blessed to God, but also, in some way, to the whole of creation. This is merely a completion of what is begun here below, namely, the union with Christ in His humanity establishing the Christian in a special relationship with God, with other men, and with the whole of creation. We have a glimpse, therefore, of the fullness of life which members of the heavenly Church possess.
The heavenly Church, as St. Thomas says, is the true Church.15 The Church of this earth and the Church of purgatory are, each in its own way, reaching out in loving hope for the heavenly Jerusalem. Vatican II puts it very simply: "The Church, to which we are called in Christ Jesus, and in which we acquire sanctity through the grace of God, will attain her full perfection only in the glory of heaven."16
The members of the heavenly Church can help us in living our life of grace until we too share its fullness with them. Their power of intercession on our behalf is but another ramification of the communal aspect of Christianity. We are meant to help others grow in Christ. We, in turn, are intended by God to receive aid from others—yes, from members of the heavenly Church, as well as from those with whom we dwell here below.
Not only can we be aided by the saints’ intercession, but the example of the canonized saints can also be of great value to us. They have concretely proved that full holiness is possible. Such an inspiration is of real worth when we are tempted to think that Christian sanctity in its higher degrees is impossible of attainment. Moreover, the canonized saints, in their diversity, teach us that there are many authentic versions of Christian holiness. They can be innovators in showing us that there are numerous possibilities in assimilating the mystery of Christ, although the basic assimilation remains the same for all Christians of all times. In the opinion of Rahner this is one of the chief roles the canonized saints exert in the life of the Church.17
14Karl Rahner, Theological Investigations, Vol. III (Baltimore: Helicon, 1967), p. 44.
15 Cf. St. Thomas Aquinas, In Ad Ephes., c. 3, Lect. 3.
16Second Vatican Council, Constitution on the Church, No. 48.
17Cf. Karl Rahner, Op. cit., pp. 100-101.
The Ascension
1. Luke 24:50-53Then he took them out as far as the outskirts of Bethany, and raising his hands he blessed them. Now as he blessed them, he withdrew from them and was carried up to heaven. They worshipped him and then went back to Jerusalem full of joy; and they were continually in the Temple praising God.
